Starting Point
by FTWinny
Summary: A post-series look at the Yuugi/Anzu/Atem love triangle. Some bittersweet themes.


Going back to school after it all had been the most ridiculous part. As though everything was normal, as though they were just a group of average teenagers, destined to graduate and eventually lose track of each other as their futures took them in different directions. As though they'd never met him-the nameless, wandering king who had taken them on the richest and wildest and most dangerous adventures they would experience in their entire lives. After traveling through the memories of a centuries-dead Pharaoh in order to battle a terrifying god of evil and destruction? Their lives could only grow more predictable. Now that Atem was...

Gone.

It would be wrong to pretend that Yuugi hadn't changed. All of them dealt with the loss differently but it was Yuugi whose expression often grew so distant that sometimes Anzu's heart struck cold with fear, because she could so easily see herself losing him as well. A part of Yuugi's heart was already in the grave, a part of his soul already haunting the afterlife. Oh, it was true that the part of Yuugi who remained on earth with the rest of them had a thirst for life that was absolutely unquenchable, and that he threw himself into his games, his friendships, and his passions with even more bright vitality than he'd possessed before he'd opened that final door for his other self. Most of the time, in fact, Anzu managed to convince herself that she was imagining things when she thought she could see him staring at something so far away it had to be in a different world. Yuugi could stay here and survive. They all could. They had each other. They were strong enough for this, weren't they? God knew that Anzu had cried herself to sleep more than one night since Atem had left but she still pulled herself together the next morning, donning her uniform and a cheerful smile before dashing off for another day of one hundred percent foreseeable circumstances at school.

Yuugi often did the same, walking with them, talking with them, sheepishly laughing off his steadily declining grades when the subject came up. Sad and lonely but still engaged, still alive.

Then there were days that he'd sit through lesson after lesson and not hear a single word. Days of nothing but continuous grieving, so deep and so painful that there was nothing else-but always carefully hidden under what seemed to be nothing more than ponderous distraction. He'd been chided and lectured by every one of their teachers for not paying attention, chided and lectured by his mother for not trying hard enough, chided and lectured even by his friends. Anzu herself had said a few words to him that she later regretted, something about how he needed to open up to them more.

She just couldn't bear to lose him too. Anzu was not the kind of person to sit around feeling sorry for herself but from an objective standpoint she did truly pity herself for the way some things had turned out. Her feelings for Atem ran deeper than she'd ever let him know, deeper than she'd ever be able to let him know now that he was gone. And there was no chance of her finding someone like him again-he was surely, and in so many ways, a true one of a kind. When he'd left, she had lost more than a good friend. Her heart ached whenever she thought about it so she tried, when she could, not to think about it. That day they had gone to the museum together Atem had been able to share in a part of her dream for the future so she was determined to keep working towards that dream, to remember him that way.

When she made it to New York, that was when she could take another look at these memories. That was the plan and she worked for it as hard as ever. She began to attend auditions again. She got another part time job. She watched Yuugi like a hawk whenever they were together, enlisted Bakura's help in tutoring him as well as Honda and Jounouchi, and somehow the five of them dragged themselves and each other through high school.

Unbeknownst to the teachers, their class had a party on the eve of their graduation ceremony. Anzu hadn't told any of the boys yet but it looked very likely that she would need at least another year before she had the money and other resources she needed to attend dance school, which needless to say dampened her spirits considerably. She considered skipping the party entirely until she caught wind of a classmate's plan to 'try to score some booze for the party' and, despite her disappointment about the prospect of being forced to put her dream on hold for another year while she continued to work crummy waitress jobs, she decided that it was up to her to put on a cute dress and a pair of heels and make sure that her friends didn't do anything incredibly stupid the night before they graduated.

Yuugi hung around for about the first twenty minutes of the party and then disappeared somewhere, prompting Anzu to-somewhat begrudgingly-begin a search. Why did she have to babysit tonight of all nights? If he was getting himself into any trouble...

She found him outside in the dark. He'd managed to climb the high stone fence that surrounded the building and now, seated casually above the rest of the world, stared further upwards at an evening sky so overcast that there was really nothing to look at. A cool breeze drew his bangs back from his face and, seeing him from a distance, Anzu forgot her own troubles and felt that same cold fear clenching at her chest again. It seemed like he might just drift away from her at any moment. There was so much open sky above them that he could end up anywhere. Panic rose in her throat and somehow escaped in the form of Yuugi's name, which she called out to him in a faintly trembling voice as she took an almost involuntary step forward.

Trembling or no, the sound was enough to get him to turn towards her.

"Anzu," he answered, blinking in apparent surprise. She'd startled him.

"Y- Yuugi," she repeated, doing her best to shake off her fright from a moment earlier as she drew closer to him. Without a moment's pause, she kicked off her shoes and pulled herself up onto the fence next to him, which seemed to be not what he was expecting. He sprang immediately from his casual posture and leaned over to take her arm, trying to help her up with special attention, she thought, to avoid any damage to her dress. She grew settled quickly but it was a few moments before Yuugi allowed himself to relax again, always the one to be considerate of others before himself.

She felt better sitting next to him, reassured once again of his solidity and presence. Yuugi wouldn't leave them, would he? He'd always been balanced precariously on the edge of life in one way or another, but surely the scale would tip him back in their direction.

But in what kind of condition? Anzu realized suddenly as she looked at him that despite his height and those wide-open features that had often reminded her of a child, he looked too old to be graduating from high school. The past three years had aged him nearly a decade, finally catching him up with the rest of them and then sending him a bit further.

"Everyone's in there celebrating."

The sound of his voice startled her out of her thoughts. He was looking up at the sky again, his expression blank and unreadable at first glance but deep and beyond sober at the second. Anzu imagined the whole world to be on his shoulders.

"Y-yeah, they are," she managed to reply, then forced herself to brighten up and give him a smile. "You should come back inside with me. Let's have a dance to celebrate too, ne?" She expected the prospect of a real dance would be enough to get him to follow her (perhaps blushing a bit in his usual way), and so it surprised her when he gave a faint shake of his head.

"I think I'll skip the rest," he decided softly, then fell silent for a long moment before speaking again. "It's too sad." There were a thousand words packed into those three and Yuugi appeared and sounded as though he'd expended the effort to say every one instead of giving the shortened version. He sighed quietly and continued. "Getting to the end of something... I don't really like it when it's like this." A small smile appeared on his face as he turned towards her again but there were whole oceans of sadness in his eyes. "I wish he could see us, at least."

As it always did when Atem was mentioned, Anzu's heart gave a painful squeeze. Her smile slipped. "I... I do too," she agreed, carefully because she didn't want to say the wrong thing right now. Her eyes prickled with tears but not enough to spill over, though she broke her gaze away from Yuugi's just in case. He immediately frowned in concern.

"I'm sorry, Anzu. I didn't mean to-" She hurriedly cut him off with a shake of her head, brushing her eyes with her fingertips before forcing herself to look up at him again. He was always like this, so quick to apologize and put his own feelings on the back burner.

"Don't apologize Yuugi. It's just that..." Like she needed to tell him what it was. He was the one who had practically lost a part of his own heart. "You're right, it is sad." She managed a troubled smile of her own. "Can I stay out here with you?"

The question caused Yuugi to brighten, a few of the grieved lines easing from his face. The corners of his mouth turned up in another smile as well, this one beautifully reminiscent of their more carefree days. "Of course."

The next few minutes passed in peaceful silence as even the breeze around them died away. Occasionally the music from inside grew loud enough for them to hear it but neither one of them really minded or even cared. Aside from that, everything was so quiet and still that it was a while before Anzu began to notice something else-a growing anticipation. But why? Was it because of their graduation tomorrow? The fear of the unknown? Maybe it was just the result of them sitting together in the dark like this; the atmosphere was a little strange. Not unpleasant, just... different from usual.

Yuugi was lost in thought as he often was, but he still seemed closer to her than he had earlier. The anticipation wasn't linked to whatever it was that felt like it would take him away from her. There was no fear, nothing that made her want to escape this growing feeling. She just couldn't shake the expectation that something was about to happen.

Again, Yuugi's voice startled her from her thoughts.

"Anzu," he said suddenly, turning back to her with as serious an expression as she'd ever seen on his face. That feeling grew again. "I know that dancing is the most important to you right now, so I'm..." He paused, took a deep breath. The anticipation swelled to an almost unbearable point. "I'm-going to wait until you make it to Broadway before I ask you to marry me." His fingers brushed against hers, the warmth of his hand adding even more to her shock and almost causing her to jump. Wait, what had he just said? She didn't have time to ask because suddenly he was-close, a little too close for comfort, and just looking into her eyes like he could see the rest of his life right there. The expression was familiar-it was the same expression she'd seen on his face that frightened her so badly, made her worry that he was looking off towards some distant future that didn't involve the rest of them, some future that was only meant for him who'd been touched so deeply by magic and mystery and his other self. Being caught in the grasp of that look in his eyes was entirely different from observing it at a distance. It was like one of those silly visual puzzles Yuugi liked so much; suddenly everything fell into focus and she could tell what he'd been seeing this whole time. The realization made her breath catch in her throat.

... She could smell his cologne. When he continued to speak, his voice was not the same as that of her childhood friend, not the same as that of the little boy who'd hung on to her every word in middle and high school. Where was the anxious blush that was supposed to spread across his face? Where was the nervousness, the stammering, the failing to meet her eyes as he tried to string his words together? He'd just said he wanted to MARRY her! Since when could Yuugi say something like that so easily?

But there was no hint of hesitation, no trace of a stutter or uncertainty as he continued. "Wait for me until then. If you get lonely in New York, call for me and I'll come be with you." Even his fingers grew surprisingly bold as he moved his hand to cover hers completely, his thumb gently rubbing the back of her palm in an inarguably intimate gesture. His whole body leaned in even closer to match the further intensity. "I'll always be here for you."

Well, after that kind of confession she honestly expected him to kiss her-and wasn't certain how she felt about the prospect-but again he surprised her by not going for it the way any other boy would, instead remaining at that just-too-close distance from her and continuing to hold her hand in silence. It was her turn to say something and she wasn't sure she could manage a word.

She swallowed. Opened her mouth. "Yu- Yuugi, I-"

"W-wait," he interrupted, a trace of that familiar nervousness finally showing itself. Thank goodness. "Before you say anything, I know how important he was-he is to you." He held her hand a bit more tightly and for a split second she saw some of her own fear in his eyes, that fear that he was going to lose something important. Then it faded away again, not by chance but because Yuugi had chosen to banish it. The strength she recognized in him now wasn't a mask laid over the surface but something that came from much deeper, filling him from his very core to the very brim. She sensed that he needed every ounce of it for his next words, which came out in a low murmur. "I can't be him. I wanted to, for you..." He failed to meet her eyes for a moment, briefly losing himself in some regret that she couldn't reach to soothe no matter how badly she wanted to. Then that strength resurfaced and he once more looked up at her, burning with some fierce determination that was made thrice as strong by heartache. "But Atem... He isn't coming back. Everything we do from now on- we have to do it without him."

Again he stopped and she could tell that emotion was making it difficult for him to speak. She was having some difficulties of her own. No matter what happened, Yuugi was going to be in mourning for the rest of his life, she could see that now. Every day he woke up without that encouraging voice in the back of his mind, that warm heaviness in his heart that he'd tried to explain to her once before-he would never forget that, never stop missing it.

It was too sad. She didn't know what to say so she bit her lip, watched him, and didn't say anything. Confusion bubbled up inside of her as she attempted again to make sense of what he'd just told her, that startling outpouring of feelings that made her heart flutter and clench all at once. How could he be so heartbroken and so decisive at the same time? When had it happened that he learned to be more decisive than her at all?

"... Ah, I think I will go back inside," he announced after the silence had dragged on for plenty long enough, intentionally shaking off the seriousness of the moment and flashing her an honest smile meant to reassure. He wasn't the kind of person to pressure anyone else for a reply, even for one this important. _I'm sorry for saying so much at once_, he seemed to say before drawing back, putting his weight on his palms, and hopping to the ground. "Jounouchi-kun's probably getting into some kind of trouble by now." This comment was delivered with a faint grin tossed over his shoulder as he started back towards the building, quickly at first but slowing down to a walk after a few steps. She stared wordlessly at his back for a moment or two, the silhouette of those shoulders that still seemed to bear the weight of the whole world-though not, she realized, with the same crippled slouch with which he'd carried himself for so long.

He reached the door.

She reached a decision.

No matter what, she wasn't going to lose him too. He was just as much a one of a kind as Atem, no matter how long it had taken everyone to figure it out and no matter how difficult the journey had been. People like those two didn't just stumble into one's life everyday. He'd as much as told her that he wanted to be a part of her life forever-she wanted the same. The details... They could work those out along the way.

"Yuugi, wait up! I'll come too." He stopped and turned back just in time to see her jumping down as well, landing gracefully before leaning over and grabbing her shoes. Even running barefoot, she caught up to him almost instantly and slid her free hand into his, threading their fingers together and holding on tightly.

This time she didn't have to look to know that he was blushing. She blushed a little too when he held back just as tightly and they walked through the door together, side by side.


End file.
